The Edinburgh Minute ⏰ Tuesday 11 November 2025
Lothian Buses sued, Cowgate road safety protest, trams 'false consultation' claim + Radical Road update
🌤️ Good morning Edinburgh. Plenty happening. Thanks as always to paid subscribers who keep this newsletter going. Here’s Tuesday's Edinburgh Minute.
🚎 Passengers who were on a double decker bus when it crashed into a telecoms mast on Calder Road last week are taking legal action against Lothian Buses. - Sally Hind, Daily Record.
🏠 Edinburgh has seen an increase of almost 250% in homeless applications from refugees based in other parts of the UK, reports Paul Hutcheon in the Daily Record.
🚨 The investigation into the death of a man who was hit by a bus in the Cowgate last November has been closed, with no further action planned. - James Delaney, BBC Scotland News.
⮑ A protest about what campaigners say is a 'lack of action' on road safety in the Cowgate is planned for outside the council's transport meeting on Thursday.
Cowgate 1 year on - what have you done? Join us in front of the City Chambers at 8.30am on Thursday 13 November to tell the council that it's time to take action on dangerous roads.
— Edinburgh Critical Mass (@edcriticalmass.bsky.social) 2025-11-05T17:38:31.132Z
🚉 It's day two of 'The Future of Edinburgh's Trams' series in The Herald. Here are the latest updates:
- 'Save the Roseburn Path. Why campaigners are fighting tram route' - Vicky Allan, The Herald.
- ⮑ Vicky also interviews path users in this piece, titled: 'A tram could wreck Edinburgh cycle route, the Roseburn Path'.
- The council's effort at tabling two options for the tram extension proposal has been described as a 'false consultation' by transport 'expert' Christian Wolmar. - Donald Turvill, The Herald.
- ''People love trams - but ignore buses at your peril' - The 'guru' behind Edinburgh's 1997 Greenways scheme talks to Donald Turvill in The Herald.
- ⮑ Meanwhile at the other end of the (proposed) line, Midlothian Council has criticised the City of Edinburgh Council's consultation for describing Shawfair as ‘deprived’. - Local Democracy Reporter, Marie Sharp, in Midlothian View.
- The consultation closes on Monday 17 November. Have your say at this link.
⛰️ Historic Environment Scotland says it still has a 'commitment to reopen part of the Radical Road next year'. The path around the Salisbury Crags has been closed since 2018. - Andrew Picken of BBC Scotland News has an update.
🚔 A 20-year-old man was taken to hospital and a 17-year-old woman was arrested after what police described as a 'disturbance' in Colinton Mains Drive on Sunday night. - Cara Blackhall & Billy Gaddi, Daily Record.
🏗️ In case you missed it yesterday: the historic former George Brown & Sons engineering building at the Shore in Leith has a new future as a food, drink and arts space. It's due to open on 27 November.
Michael MacLeod
🐈 As mentioned last week, there's a West End community meeting tonight for people interested in meeting the team behind fundraising for a statue of Hugo the Cat, including local author Kent Hung. - It's at The Green Room on William Street from 6pm and more details are here.
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📌 “TONIGHT - Join Leith Comedy Presents for a brand new storytelling night at Bowlers Rest in Leith. Tell us a 5-minute story and listen to others in a friendly, relaxed setting. Your host for the night is the brilliant comedian, storyteller and local legend, Jo Caulfield. Free entry.” - Thanks to Rosalind Romer from Leith Comedy Presents for sharing this.
📌 “TONIGHT - Orémi X So Far Sounds Acoustic Night. Enjoy 3 incredible performances from local musicians with time in between to meet new people & make new pals! :) Use our code OREMI-8944C for a discount!” - Thanks to Ini at Orémi for sharing this.
📌 “Wednesday 12 November 2025: Launch party for Montgomery Parklife Issue 2! We're celebrating the second issue of our hyperlocal community magazine based in Montgomery Street Park, which was made possible by wonderful crowdfunders and local businesses, including the Minute & Minute readers!” - Thanks to Katie & Diego, Parklife co-editors, for sharing this.
📌 “Edinburgh-based charity, Scottish Book Trust, have launched their Christmas Appeal. Featuring Pooh and Piglet, the campaign is asking for donations to make it possible to send new books to families accessing food banks in Edinburgh and across Scotland this winter. ” - Thanks to the SBT for sharing this.
📌 “Thu 13 Nov, 5-8pm - An evening of conscious fashion & good company @ Shop With No Name featuring local designers. Hear a short Founders’ Chat and Q&A, where they'll share a little about the brands and the ideas behind their collections. Enjoy beautiful fashion with a voucher to spend on the night.” - Thanks to Jen Byrne for sharing this.
📌 “Thursday, 2.30pm at Marchmont St. Giles’ Parish Church. 3 Kilgraston Road: Tea Ceilidh - Dance away the afternoon well know Scots Dances and others. With callers and great live music £6 pay at the door” - Thanks to Stan Reeves for sharing this.
📌 “Thursday 13 November, 6-10pm - Film Networking in partnership with Edinburgh Short Film Festival! Our regular, informal and friendly mixer for film professionals and enthusiasts is free to attend, and this month we're partnering with our friends at ESFF at the Filmhouse!” - Thanks to Cinetopia for sharing this. Free tickets are here.
📌 “Fri 14 - Sat 15 November - Magic Labyrinth features 6 magic shows across 6 unique spaces within Scotland's largest nuclear bunker~ Barnton Bunker! Join us for a night of spellbinding illusions and enchanting storytelling as you explore this previously abandoned piece of Edinburgh history!” - Thanks to Jean Paul Archambeault of Barnton Bunker Preservation Society for sharing this.
📌 “Friday 14th November - 7pm. Pianodrome Bruntsfield. The Badwills. A specially curated night of folk songs from across Italy from Scotland’s very own Italian folk music collective, The Badwills. Come ready to sing, to dream and even dance on a piano or two.” - Thanks to the organisers for sharing this.
📌 "Friday 14 November - Join us for the Creative Edinburgh Awards, a night to honour the people and projects that make our creative community thrive. Whether you're cheering on a finalist or simply want to be part of something bigger, your presence matters! Show your support for Edinburgh's creatives." - Thanks to Creative Edinburgh for sharing this.
📌 “Saturday 15 November - the Together in Solidarity event, a fundraiser and call to action for social, climate and Palestine justice, is at St James' Church, John's Place. From 4 to 10pm there will be activities, speakers, workshops (registration required) and music. All welcome!” - Thanks to InSolidarity Edinburgh for sharing this. - The full line-up is here.
📌 "Tuesday 18 November: With the end of Windows 10 support, many will be forced to buy a new computer. Edinburgh Linux Café can help by showing you Linux Mint, a free and easy alternative that can add years to the life of your machine. Drop in at the Edinburgh Cine and Video Society on Fettes Row." - Thanks to Edinburgh Linux Cafe for sharing this.
📌 "Calling Edinburgh Singles! The Pip Social Ceilidh returns on 19th November with 100 singles, live band and a fantastic venue, Greyfriars Hall. Established in Edinburgh, Pip Social has been connecting singles across the city, with events described as the "best singles nights."" - Thanks to Jennie & Sarah (pip social Co-Founders), for sharing this.
📌 "Thursday 20 November to Sunday 23 November. Eleven Painters Exhibition, Dundas St Gallery, EH3 6HZ. Opening hours 10am to 6.00pm Thursday to Saturday 10am to 4pm Sunday. This is the 4th exhibition of the collective of current and former students of Leith School of art." - Thanks to elevenpainters.com for sharing this.
📌 “Thursday 20 November - Walk across two metres of red-hot embers to help end youth homelessness in Scotland for Rock Trust. Includes a 90-minute workshop to conquer fear before the challenge begins and after enjoy delicious Pizza from Pizza Geeks. Limited spaces - sign up now!” - Thanks to Cara from Rock Trust for sharing this.
📌 "Friday 21 November, Bruntsfield - St Oswald's hosts its inaugural Pilates classes, perfectly timed to fit in with school drop off. All levels welcome, including beginners for a series of four classes. Enjoy the newly opened community space and set yourself up for a strong start to the weekend." - Thanks to Katy Bromberg - Pilates teacher with Bea Alexander Pilates, for sharing this.
📌 "Leith School of Art Festive Workshops are here! Craft your own metal Christmas tree decorations using basic jewellery techniques, or create beautiful handmade cards and gift tags. Hot drinks, biscuits & plenty of festive cheer included! Saturday 29 November, 10am - 1pm." - Thanks to Leith School of Art for sharing this.
📌 "Wednesday 26 November – Join Bloom Scotland for a practical lunchtime workshop on communicating sustainability without greenwashing. Led by sustainability comms expert Kirstie Macdonald, we'll break down the Green Claims Code and how to speak about environmental impact with confidence." - Thanks to Bloom Scotland for sharing this.
📮 Anything missing? Please share your local news and events here.
👀 The most-visited links from the last newsletter:
- 🚲 Voi hire bikes blocking existing cycle parking.
- 📌 Edinburgh University Short Courses open for booking starting in January.
- 🚦 Council publishes plans to 'improve' Barnton Junction.
- 🛤️ Proposed tram routes: cost and journey times compared.
- 🚉 Trams consultation link (closes next Monday).
⏰ Thanks for reading edition number 766.
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